The Minister for Communications and Technology, Mr. Felix Owusu Adjapong, has stated that the management contract between Ghana Telecom and Telenor of Norway was a fair deal and Ghana Telecom would not be the loser in any way.

The Minister was reacting to recent media reports, in The Daily Dispatch, that the contract would benefit the Norwegians more and that the deal was even worse than the one which was awarded to the Malaysians by the NDC government and abrogated by the Minister last year.

The minsiter wondered why he or the officials of Telenor Management Partners (TMP) were not contacted before the publication.

The lead story, ‘Bombshell…TMP will cost Telecom ?2.6bn a month’ had hinted about certain problems with the agreement between the government of Ghana and TMP on Ghana Telecom (GT).

Commenting on a radio station, the editor of the paper, Ben Ephson, said the story was based on an 18-page agreement which was duly signed by a representative of TMP, awaiting the signature of the government of Ghana’s representative.

As the minister prepares to respond to the article under reference, and others, on the TMP agreement, The Daily Dispatch would like him consider these issues:

(a) adverts placed were for strategic investments, were any adverts placed for a management contract?
(b) TMP may have tendered for a strategic investment or did they submit for management consultancy?
(c) can the Government of Ghana say that in selecting TMP, she had access to other business plans for comparative analysis and study?

Analysts believe that statements by certain government appointees to the effect that the abolition of the criminal Libel Law did not mean journalists should be irresponsible is unnecessary and ill-placed. What such appointees need be reminded of is that the law “Causing Financial Loss to the State” is not for any particular group(s) or person(s). Nevertheless, The Daily Dispatch investigations into the TMP continues.